And after flowing for hundreds of kilometres, it suddenly appears to stop moving south. 28. The purpose of the voyage was to raise funds for the treatment of the endangered Tasmanian Devil, an animal species suffering from a facial tumour disease and, if possible, break the dinghy sailing time record for the crossing. 3rd ed. We had eight people inside [the hull of the boat] with water up to our knees discussing what the next plan would be, he said. King Island and the Indian Ocean lie at its western extremity, and the Furneaux Group is at its eastern end. The documents include unprecedentedly detailed briefing materials and photographs from more than a half dozen incidents. Meanwhile, America's adversaries, especially China, are investing massively into drone swarm capabilities, especially for use in the maritime environment, for wartime use and for dual-role applications. We now know that in several instances, the Navy had significant information about the potential origin of the drones deployed in some of the most serious incidents, although the specific operators remained unknown. "Purists occasionally spark up and say that . The probability of encountering 3 meter or higher waves is approximately 30% at the western end of the Strait compared to approximately 15% in the North East. [12], Despite the strait's difficult waters, it provided a safer and less boisterous[clarification needed] passage for ships on the route from Europe or India to Sydney in the early 19th century. Arthur Lane, a Sydney to Hobart veteran who leads the races organising committee, says the shallow water means a bit of a twist on the stomach. And that creates the hazard for yachts., In terms of treacherous water, its got to be up there with the most treacherous in the world., Its why Peter Langman, who will lead one of the smallest boats to Hobart, gets nervous thinking about it. What makes his seemingly trivial detail all the more intriguing is that it comes up again in our next strange encounter, which, coincidentally or not, happened almost 44 years to the day previously. [4] The Australian military would conduct an extensive search of the area. Today the wave height in Bass Strait exceeds 1 meter (3 ft 3 in) and it is dangerous for swimming. Email info@bst.net.au. But literally anything could happen Weve got to be prepared for whatever.. In the currently in-force IHO 1953 draft, it is instead associated with the Great Australian Bight; the Bight is numbered 62, while the Bass Strait is designated 62-A.[1]. By Les Christie @CNNMoney July 27, 2012: 5:47 AM ET. Prior to 1991, piracy off the Horn of Africa was more or less unknown, with far more incidents occurring in the Strait of Malacca or the Gulf of Guinea.In the 1980s the Somali government resettled . The Alaska Bering Sea crab fishery . (Supplied: Leo Lambers)Armed with an Epirb and a beacon each, dehydrated food and camping gear, the brothers set off from . The USS Russell in particular is known to have these systems onboard prior to the incident on July 30th. Lin Pardey. Ever since Bass Strait was charted by George Bass and Matthew Flinders in 1798, many ship's captains have decided to risk the dangerous passage to shorten the time needed to reach Sydney. This sea strait has a maximum length of 310 miles and a maximum width of 220 miles. In the Indian Ocean-Pacific Ocean basin, a coordinate of 40S 146E is located at this strait. He has noticed that as the water becomes more shallow, the waves tend to stand up quite a lot. The first incident occurred on March 30, 2019. The first humans arrived in Tasmania around 40,000 years ago. Most notably the Kent Group National Park covers the Kent Group islands of Tasmania, as well as the surrounding state waters which is a dedicated marine reserve. Bass Strait is approximately 250km (160mi) wide and 500km (310mi) long, with an average depth of 60m (200ft). The first submarine communications cable across Bass Strait was laid in 1859. Bass Strait is shallow. The Panama Canal: Interlinking the Atlantic Ocean with . The great English navigator, Captain James Cook first explored the strait in 1770, thinking that it might be a large harbour in the great southern continent that he had been sent to find. On the same day that Fred Valentich disappeared (October 21, 1978), Roy Manifold would capture a picture (shown above) of a strange object in the sky over the Bass Strait. Some suggested that, due to an increase in wind around the time the ship disappeared, it was possible that damage could have been inflicted upon the mast, or perhaps a loose container from the many ships passing through the area had damaged the rudder. The yachts fate, however, is still a mystery to this day. As a result, ferry sailings are often disrupted and Cook Strait is regarded as one of the most dangerous and unpredictable waters in the world. The two larger reserves, Flinders and Zeehan, extend mostly outside of the Bass Strait area. It has an average depth of just 60 metres, presenting risks to less experienced sailors who are used to navigating in deep ocean waters. [31], Rod Harris, Ian and Peter Richards are credited with the first kayak crossing in 1971. (The East Australian Current is the one from the movie Finding Nemo.) The Bass Strait's owner and operator, Hong Kong-based Pacific Basin, did not reply to several requests for comment. Like the rest of the waters surrounding Tasmania, and particularly because of its limited depth, it is notoriously rough, with many ships lost there during the 19th century. [16]:484 Large gas fields include the Whiptail field, the Barracouta Field, the Snapper Field, and the Marlin Field. GENEVA (ILO News) - As many as 24,000 fishermen and persons engaged in fish farming and processing are killed every year putting fishing and related occupations among the most dangerous of all professions, according to a new report* released by the International Labour Office (ILO). Its not just whats happening under the water that makes it difficult to cross Bass Strait. [4] After the glacial period ended, sea levels rose and flooded the Bassian Plain to form Bass Strait at around 8,000 years ago, leaving them isolated from the Australian mainland. Many sea kayakers have since made the crossing, usually by island hopping on the eastern side of the strait. It is a natural strait like the Strait of Gibraltar, which is the route between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean. In 1798, Bass explored along the southern coast of what . On the popular Australian soap Neighbours, one of its most dramatic storylines unfolded when a 1940s themed joy flight to Tasmania was sabotaged by a bomb. These incidents have come to be woven into an ongoing discussion about unidentified aerial phenomena, traditionally known as UFOs. Fovex Strait. Indigenous Australians crossed into Tasmania via the Bassian Plain tens of thousands of years ago. The International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of Bass Strait as follows:[1], Some authorities consider the strait to be part of the Pacific Ocean[2] as in the never-approved 2002 IHO Limits of Oceans and Seas draft. In 1978, one of the most famous UFO incidents in Australian history occurred over Bass Strait. The Eliza seemingly vanished off the face of the Earth during the rescue attempt. By the time he had returned his gaze to the road, the green object was nowhere to be seen. [9] Later it became known as Bass Strait. Espionage collected in these areas is of extreme value to potential adversaries and poses a serious and ongoing national security threat. Bass Strait is regularly crossed by sailing vessels, including during the annual Melbourne to Hobart Yacht Race. Torres Strait, passage between the Coral Sea, on the east, and the Arafura Sea, in the western Pacific Ocean. Read More: The exact duration of the incident is less clear, though the timeline indicates drones were spotted over a period of about four and a half hours. However, after several days with no contact and no arrival, search planes were sent out in a desperate bid to find the apparently stricken vessel. Interestingly, in their absolute desperation for information, family members of the crew even visited a clairvoyant, who stated that the crew had come upon an island south of their last known location. Further analysis suggested that the area had been in flames, and other material appeared to show someone had tried to intensely stamp it out. A lengthier description states that a total of five unknown drones approached the USS Russell in the course of the incident. Read more explainers here. Monnik and Page explained that drone detection itself remains a very complex problem that often requires specialized radar and radio frequency equipment that is not guaranteed to work in all circumstances. But when he and his crew were traveling to Tasmania and started getting Like the Tasman Sea, the Bass Strait is heavily influenced by weather patterns and at the same time, the severity of the waves varies depending on which side of the Strait you are on. Half of the world's attacks now take place in the waters off Indonesia, Singapore and . Esso Australia has made significant progress on our well plug and abandonment work, which puts non-producing platforms in a safe state until final decommissioning occurs. he said back in 2006, recalling the races worst-ever year. In short, there was nothing to indicate that she had been planning on leaving.[6]. The domestic sea route is serviced by two Spirit of Tasmania passenger vehicle ferries, based in Devonport, Tasmania. The Basslink HVDC electrical cable has been in service since 2006. The major airports in Tasmania are Hobart International Airport and Launceston Airport, where the main airlines are Jetstar and Virgin Australia. The vessel was part of a salvage operation for the Sydney Cove, which had recently become wrecked on the rocky coast. Strong currents between the Antarctic-driven southeast portions of the Indian Ocean and the Tasman Sea's Pacific Ocean waters provide a strait of powerful, wild storm waves. Why is the Cook Strait so dangerous? The strait is named after James Cook, the first European commander to sail through it, in 1770. winter southern ocean gales can turn the crossing into a real adventure. So if that happens, obviously you can get a fairly sudden deterioration in conditions and quite strong winds and heavy seas.. Its exploitation began in 2005. The winds get funnelled through Bass Straight & can cause seriously rough seas. The sailors Adrian Beswick and Josh Philips accompanied by a support vessel successfully completed the crossing in 14 hours 53 minutes. They then reported that the humming sound had suddenly stopped. As you might imagine, there were numerous accounts of strange events in the Bass Strait during World War II. So the tides need to squeeze through the Bass Strait every day, going backwards and forwards and that may be in a different direction to all the other currents rushing around.. NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- The nation's most dangerous job, fishing for Alaskan . 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